The games were announced by Nintendo on January 8, 2013. They were released on October 12, 2013.[1]X and Y are the first ever 3D games in the main Pokémon series.[2]

New starting Pokémon were revealed in the announcement video for the game. The starters for X and Y are the Grass-type Pokémon, Chespin, the Fire-type Pokémon, Fennekin, and the Water-type Pokémon, Froakie. The announcement video also showed two new legendary Pokémon, Yveltal, a bird-like Pokémon which has a shape kind of like the letter Y, and Xerneas, a deer-like Pokémon which has X-shapes in its eyes. Another Pokémon, Sylveon, is both a new Eevee evolution and an entirely new type called the Fairy-type, which is strong against Dragon-type Pokémon. Some older Pokémon, like Jigglypuff, Marill, and Gardevoir, have also been changed to be part Fairy-type. There is also a new gameplay element called Mega Evolution. Some Pokémon like Mewtwo, Blaziken, and Lucario are able to power up during a battle if they are holding a Mega Stone.[3] Mega forms of Pokémon are stronger than their normal forms.